


Just a Trim

by kenna_the_antenna



Category: Linked Universe - Fandom, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Dad Jokes, Family Fluff, Fluff, Legend helps, Minor Injuries, Minor Violence, Sky knows a baby when he sees one, Time's questionable cooking, Twilight can say one word and it's cub
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-20
Updated: 2020-02-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:13:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22812874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kenna_the_antenna/pseuds/kenna_the_antenna
Summary: Having long hair is a safety hazard when battling monsters. Wild finds that out first hand.
Comments: 9
Kudos: 383





	Just a Trim

**Author's Note:**

> Just a short little drabble about what would happen if Wild got yoinked mid-battle by his hair and the subsequent happenings.  
> Based off of Jojo56830's Linked Universe AU.

Wild wouldn’t say he was particularly attached to his long hair. He didn’t have a sense of pride in growing it out, there was never a conscious decision to do so. It just happened. There were so many things to worry about, and stressing about keeping his hair short seemed so.. trivial. 

Besides, there were so many things one could do with their hair when it was long, and they had the time on their hands. He’d taught himself to braid when still trying to defeat Calamity Ganon. He’d seen Koko braid a few strands in her sister’s hair as she’d wait for dinner to cook, and the young girl was happy to teach him the basics. He’d practiced on his horses first, always ever-so-gentle with their mane and quick to give a carrot when they started to get fussy. It helped wake up his fingers, practice his dexterity after spending a hundred years unmoving. The fact it also helped kill time during the long hours of riding along the road, helped too. He’d picked up little tricks and new styles at different places. The Zora had no hair, but they did have a knack for picking out good accessories that would bring out his eyes and frame his face. The Gorons were little help, but the Rito helped him perfect his braids. The Sheikah helped with his buns, and the Gerudo could teach it all and then some. They’d even shown him how to make a simple hair mask to help it recover from all the heat damage when he found his hair feeling a little crunchy after a few weeks in the desert. 

To say the least, Wild didn’t mind his long hair one bit when he met the other Heroes and joined their ranks. He kept it in a low ponytail most of the time, since most of his spare time seemed to be spent patching others up, feeding eight other mouths, or passing out on his bedroll after a too long day of fighting monsters. He’d switch it to a bun sometimes when he was cooking, and Legend made one too many comments about finding hair in his food, but Wild still hadn’t trimmed it. 

It happened one sunny afternoon, battling moblins of all things. Wild had been surprised the first time he’d seen one of the creatures outside of his world. They were more pig-like than the ones he’d grown accustomed to. Apparently smarter, he’d soon learned. But he’d adapted quickly enough and when he charged into battle alongside the other Heroes, there was no surprise. At least not until one had grabbed a fistful of his hair and lifted him off the ground. He’d hissed in pain, kicking the empty air as he desperately tried to break free. Wild heard Sky shout his name somewhere to his right, but it was too far away. He saw the moblin raise its other arm, sword in hand. Blood was already glistening off of it from where it had gotten a lucky jab earlier. The cut on his arm was nothing but superficial. However, Wild didn’t think he’d be so lucky a second time around. He panicked and with a cry, sliced through his hair. Dropping like a rock never felt good, head bouncing off the ground. and neck aching from being yanked up in the first place, but Wild managed to watch as Sky stab his sword right through the monster’s chest. He watched it drop dead right there before suddenly, Sky was right in front of him. He saw the older Hero move his mouth, reach up to his face, but his ears were ringing too loud to make out anything. His fingers came away red and Wild wondered why that was. He looked worried. And blurry. 

Twilight was there next, reaching up and cradling his face with firm hands. Wild leaned into the touch, “What’s goin’ on? Everything’s so..it’s so blurry.”

Someone was pushing a bottle into his hands, snatching it back when it kept slipping through his fingers, and suddenly Legend was there next to the other two, forcing the contents of a bottle down his throat. He scrunched his nose at the taste, but the ringing in his ears had lessened and everyone was looking a little less like a blur of mushy colors. 

“Cub, can you hear me?” Twilight’s voice reached him first and Wild nodded slowly. It apparently was progress, because his mentor let out a sigh and tugged him into a hug. 

“Seriously, what’s with you and getting hurt?” That sounded like Warriors, and the soft smacking noise against something hollow-sounding would be Time hitting the other Hero’s head for his comment. It had to be Warrior’s head, nothing else sounded so empty. 

Legend shoved another bottle down his throat when Wild was distracted, and it made everything all the clearer. That’s when he heard it. 

“It’s so short...”  
“He looks so much younger.”  
“Does he even realize what he’s done?”  
“We aren’t letting Hyrule cook again tonight.”

The last one made sense, but Wild was puzzled by the others. He had a monster of a headache and went to swat away Twilight’s hands before he felt it. There was a breeze on his neck. There hadn’t been a breeze on his neck since...

His eyes went wide and his mentor tightened his hold, squishing his cheeks just a little. The young man always had a knack for grounding him when things became a little too hectic.

“Cub..”

“No, let me see.” Wild spoke evenly and after a moment of hesitance, Legend held up his shield. 

It was as short as it had been when he first had woken from the Shrine. As short as it had been... before. Before he’d failed his land, and everyone he cared about was dead, or stuck battling Ganon for a hundred years. 

Wild forced himself to take a deep breath. He could believe he would even think such a thing, but the scars helped. He wasn’t Him anymore. Calamity was gone, the spirits of his friends were free, and Zelda was still in Hateno, pouring over texts with Purah and making plans for rebuilding the kingdom they both loved so dearly. He had the other Heroes now, all of them, caring for him in their own ways. 

He realized the others had been silent as he’d been taking in the change, and glanced around. Worried faces stared back, but Wild only smiled tiredly, “I hope it doesn’t look too bad, huh?”  
The group collectively sighed in relief and after a moment, Time instructed them all to take stock of their injuries and head out to make camp. They were calling it a day for Wild’s sake. Even with the potions, he wasn’t feeling on top of the world. 

Twilight and Sky each looped an arm around his waist to hoist him up and help him stumble along. Wild could help but notice the rueful smile on the latter’s face. After a pointed stare, Sky broke into an even brighter grin. “A baby!” was all the Hero of the Sky declared, and Wild could have sworn he saw his fingers twitch like he wanted to pinch his cheeks. 

“You do look more like an actual teenager than a disgruntled bokoblin now.” Legend teased as he bandaged up Hyrule’s leg, unbothered by the tired glare Wild sent him as he was helped along, “It’s a wonder, really.” 

The Hero of Hyrule laughed softly, “It’s still plenty long enough to braid and stuff, if you’re worried about that. You’ve braided my hair before and it’s still shorter than yours.” It was a reassuring thought, and Wild nodded as he let the others

help him hobble along. From the look he was getting from Twilight, he already knew the other was going to sit him down and instruct him not to move a muscle till he was steadier. Wild knew the drill; Warrior did have a touch of truth in his earlier statement. Wild was self-sacrificing on the best of days and had a habit of hitting his head against things in those instances. A shield, a club, the ground, the hilt of a sword, there’d even been that one instance where he’d collided with Time’s armor and couldn’t remember what day it was for the life of him, or where that new dent in the Shade’s armor had come from. Time hadn’t gotten the dent fixed either, not for almost a month. Even when Four begged. A reminder, he’d called it, to Wild that he should be more careful.  
After the other’s had set up camp, and Wild was seated so Twilight wouldn’t have an aneurysm worrying over him, Wind rounded on the second youngest hero. 

“You lost me fifty rupees.” He groaned. “To Legend, no less. He bet me that somebody would grab your hair one of these days, when we were fighting. Like purposely grab it. That was two weeks ago, I had completely forgotten about it.” The youngest hero frowned, “In hindsight, I’m surprised it didn’t happen sooner. It looks good though, your haircut.” 

Wild smiled, “Thanks, I think the biggest change is actually feeling the wind on my neck again, but it’s not the end of the world. Thank Hylia I had a sharp sword for once, or else it never would have cut through quick enough.” 

“I’d rather have you with no hair over no head.” Wind agreed solemnly, “So a cool new haircut is just a bonus.” 

The two youngest Heroes chatted for a bit, distracting Wild from his headache until it was announced dinner was ready. Having learnt from past mistakes, Hyrule wasn’t allowed near the pot it seemed, if the sulking was anything to go off. Instead, Time and Legend seemed to have made a joint effort in making something edible. Wild sincerely hoped it was. The two had spent plenty of time alone on their adventures, and neither had died from food poisoning. Between them, there was hope that they could all go to bed at least warm and full. Maybe even satisfied with the meal.  
Four gave him a bowl and Legend gave him another potion, while Warriors decided it was his duty to be the next to look over Wild’s new haircut and the cut on his head. It had stopped bleeding ages ago, but the older of the two heroes seemed bothered with the new ‘do. 

“The ends are so uneven. This is going to bug me if I don’t fix it, hold still.” 

Wild obeyed, occasionally sipping at the surprisingly not-stomach churning soup as he allowed Warriors to even it all out. It had been a little lopsided, but nothing major it seemed. The knight had been gentle and had even tied it back for Wild before he leaned a little closer. 

“I’m here if you need to talk, kid.” Warriors said quietly, “I’m guessing you didn’t have long hair one hundred years ago, and now you don’t have long hair once more. I’m not well-versed in the whole memory loss thing, but I’m still a captain. I know that sometimes, some things remind you of unpleasant experiences, and I also know that sometimes it’s best to turn to those around you and talk. So..” 

Warriors gave Wild a look he usually only reserved for Wind and Hyrule when they had nightmares, “I’m here if you ever need an ear to borrow. No judgement, just someone to listen.”  
Wild felt a pang in his chest, and if they both got a little misty-eyed for a moment and Warriors pulled him into a quick side-hug, no one said anything. 

As the evening rolled along, and the other boys and men were settling down and tugging out bed rolls, Time finally rounded on his protégé’s protégé. Wild shrunk down where he sat, expected another one of the Old Man’s disapproving looks and a stern lecture. What he didn’t expect was for the Hero to chuckle and pat him on the back. 

“That was some fast thinking out there, Cub. Though that landing could have used some work.” Before Wild could retort, the eldest Hero held up a finger.  
“I thought of this one when I was making dinner. What do you call a mean criminal falling off of a cliff? A condescending con descending.”

Wild groaned loud enough, Legend shushed him. “Don’t! You’re just encouraging him.”

From how hard Time was laughing next to Wild at his own joke, the Hero wished he’d just gotten a lecture instead. Unfortunately, Time didn’t have anything to lecture him on. He didn’t try to play the martyr card; he hadn’t acted recklessly, and Time could not blame Wild for having long hair. He’d done the same thing when he was younger. 

“I am glad you are safe, Wild.” Time said, sobering up. “You had us worried there for a few moments and your quick thinking saved your life. Good job.” Another pat on the back and Twilight stepped in to herd Wild to his bed roll. 

The group seemed to be in agreement that an early night was in everyone’s best interests. Time took first watch, and Wild felt safe to curl up under his blanket. Twilight was nearby, a familiar warmth by his side, even in human form. 

Wild wouldn’t say he was particularly attached to his long hair, but he did miss it. His short hair was a host of memories tinged with sadness and lost. Losing sleep over it wasn’t an issue, however, for he knew he had the chance to make such pleasant new memories with eight other Heroes by his side.


End file.
